Robert J. "Bob" Troester U.S. Attorney | U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Oklahoma
Donald Eugene Cooks, a 50-year-old resident of Oklahoma City, has been sentenced to 92 months of incarceration in federal prison. The charges against Cooks were conspiracy to commit mail theft, possession of stolen mail, and witness tampering, as stated by U.S. Attorney Robert J. Troester.
On October 3, 2023, a federal Grand Jury indicted Cooks with four counts in a second superseding indictment. On March 28, 2024, a federal jury found Cooks guilty on all charges after a three-day trial.
The trial evidence showed that Cooks conspired with Irvin Herbert Sawyer, a 41-year-old from Norman, to steal mail from an Oklahoma City Post Office in July 2022. Sawyer, employed as a rural carrier associate, shared the Post Office access code with Cooks. The jury heard that Cooks entered the Post Office after hours with Sawyer's code on multiple occasions. On July 19, 2022, Cooks successfully stole mail and transported it to his motel room. An attempt to steal additional mail ended with the alarm being triggered, causing police to arrive before they could leave the parking lot. Cooks fled but was arrested shortly after. Police later found stolen mail in Cooks' motel room.
In July 2023, while incarcerated, Cooks tried to intimidate a government witness to prevent testimony at his trial. Sawyer pleaded guilty to conspiracy in July 2023 and was sentenced to 36 months of probation in April 2024.
Chief U.S. District Judge Timothy D. DeGiusti sentenced Cooks on March 26, 2025, to 92 months in federal prison, with an additional three years of supervised release. Judge DeGiusti emphasized the importance of deterring future crimes and safeguarding the public. The sentence considered Cooks' criminal activity while in jail and his extensive criminal history.
Public records show Cooks' history of felony convictions, including possession of a stolen vehicle, bail jumping, concealing stolen property, second-degree forgery, second-degree burglary, and two counts of escape from penal institutions, across multiple cases in Oklahoma.
This case was investigated by the United States Postal Inspection Service and the Oklahoma City Police Department, with Assistant U.S. Attorneys Bow Bottomly and Charles Brown handling the prosecution. Further information is available through public filings.
